Ecclesiastical history epitomized containing a faithful account of ye birth life & doctrine, crucifixion & ascension of ye holy Iesus : with the lives of ye apostles evangelists & primitive fathers & other famous men in ye Christian Church both antient & modern who have couragiously confessed & suffered glorious martyrdomes & persecutions under several tyrannical governours both heathenish and Romish : faithfully continued to ye reformation and since deduced to this present age / carefully collected by J.S. ... ; in two parts.

The Life and Martyrdom of St. PETER the Apostle.

FIrst I shall begin with St. Peter, that great Apostle of the Circumcision, who so long and earnestly laboured for the Conversion of the Jews, whose obstinacy had before drawn Tears from the Eyes of his Blessed Lord and Master, when he wept over it with, O Jerusalem, Jerusa∣lem, hadst thou but known even in this thy day the things that belonged unto thy peace, but now they are hidden from thine eyes, &c.

But to begin first with the place of his Birth, which was Bethsaida in the upper Galilee, antient∣ly belonging to the Tribe of Nepthali, vulgarly called Galilee of the Gentiles, which is now reduced (though formerly a famous City) into certain small Cottages, and remaines only famous to Po∣sterity by reason it was the Birth-place of this great Apostle.

The exact time of his Birth, notwithstanding the conjectures and guesses, that have been made by divers Learned Men, remains as yet undecided; or as we may say altogether uncertain; by Reason what has been hitherto argued as to that point, has been only conjectural, and not firmly ground∣ed upon any warrantable Authority. Most of the Fathers, that have written about the time of his Birth, take their ground from the Birth of our Saviour, by reason St. Peter, at what time our Blessed Lord called him to be one of his Disciples,

was not only Married, but lived in a settled state: therefore they judge he could not be less than 10 years elder than his Master; or according to Stenge, who builds his Foundation upon Bellarmine, he was born in the Eighth year of Octavius Augu∣gustus, and in the 20 of King Herod which was about 17 years before the Birth of our Savi∣our.

His Father was Jonah of Bethsaida, and he be∣ing Circumcised according to the Jewish Law, had the name of Simon or Simeon given him at his Cir∣cumcision; to which our Saviour added the name of Cephas, which in the Syriack Language, then very much used among the Jews, signifies a Stone, or as the Greek renders it 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, a Rock; which has occasioned many to believe that from that Inference our Saviour expressed himself, upon this Rock will I build my Church, that is, upon Peters Faith, Constancy, and the Gospel he was to Preach. And from the Alteration of his name, or rather addition, at such time as he came to be our Savi∣our's Disciple, the Popes have taken occasion to alter their's at what time they come to the Papacy. His Brother was Andrew the Apostle, nor is it known which of them was the elder. He was a Man of small Education when he was chosen by our Saviour as a Disciple, but was soon after in∣structed by the Fountain of all Wisdom and Lear∣ning, even the Holy Spirit.

Having proceeded thus far, I shall not think it a∣miss to give the Reader a Description of the Per∣son of this famous Apostle (passing over for the most part such passages of his Life, as are found in Sacred Writ, to be more Brief in this our purpose) according as he is described in Ecclesiastical Hi∣story.

And first, as Nicephorus declares, he was somewhat slender, of a middle size, but rather in∣clining to Tallness; his Complexion very pale and almost white; the Hair of his Head curled and thick, but very short, though St. Hierom in∣formes us (as he has it out of Clemens his Periods) that he was exceeding Bald, which might proba∣bly enough be, in his declining Age; his Eyes black, unless some small specks of Red, which ma∣ny of the Fathers have attributed to his often weeping; his Eye-brows very thin; his Nose long, though at the end broad or flat. And thus have I described the outside of this Admirable Man, according as it has been derived down to Posterity by such as lived in his time, and had often con∣verse with him and now since the outside is de∣scribed; it will not be amiss to give a short de∣scription of his Temper, and the Internal Facul∣ties of his Soul. First then, He was Eager and Fierce, Witness his encountering the Guard of Souldiers that came to apprehend his Lord, and at that time cutting off the Ear of the High Priests Servant; his forwardness to speak, and to return answers, though sometimes to the endangering his Life, yet withal Courteous and Humble; for when Cornelius, being overjoyed with the Vision of him, would have received him almost with Divine Adoration, he forbid him, telling him he was but a man subject to the Passions as other men. With how much Candor and Modesty did he treat the Inferiour Rulers of the Church, in∣somuch that he upon whom such Honours have been heaped in all Ages, stiles himself no greater than their Fellow Presbyter. How earnestly did he Labour to win Souls to Christ? and with what

Resolution and Bravery did he tell the Sanhedri•• which had Sentenced and Condemned him, tha•• they and their Fellows were Guilty of his Mur∣ther? and that they could not possibly be saved by any other means than by the Blood of Jesu•• Christ whom they had Crucified? How do we al•• along hear of his earnest Exhortations to such a•• were left to Rule and Govern the Church in his absence, to be careful in their Charge as to the Cure of Souls? Nor was this in his mean Capa∣city, but when he sate Bishop of Antioch in which he continued the space of nine years, greatly pro∣pagating the Gospel; as likewise in his Travels into the Western parts of the World, after many tedious Journeys, he at last came to Rome, but we find not by any well grounded Authority that he sat Bishop of that See 25 years, as the Doctors of that Church would have it; nor indeed that ever he was Bishop Rome, though the Popes have all along derived their Power or Succession from him: But that he was at Rome, and suffered there under Nero, most of the Writers of Ecclesiastical Histo∣ry Accord, as I shall more fully demonstrate here∣after.

That he was Married, we have St. Paul's word for it, he telling us, that one Cephas (which was undoubtedly Peter) went about leading with him a Wife and a Sister; and as it is recorded by seve∣ral of the Fathers, a Daughter; and as Clemens Alexandrinus tells us, that when St. Peter beheld his Wife going to her Martyrdom he exceedingly rejoyced, calling to her aloud, and charging her to be mindful of our Lord. And thus much of his being Married.

When he was at Rome, he prophesied the de∣struction of Jerusalem and the Jewish Nation by Vespasian: But about that time the Persecution growing hot against the Christians, especially upon Nero's return from Achaia in great Pomp, he at that time resolving to glut himself with In∣nocent Blood, caused several thousands of the Christians to be shut up in Prisons, and amongst the rest St. Peter, for whose preservation the Prayers of the Christians were still put up to Heaven many of the chief of them who could gain Access perswading him earnestly to make his escape, alledging that the preservation of his Life would be greatly useful to the Church. The which (after many denials) he attempted by getting over the Wall, which being effected, and he coming to the City Gate, is there said to meet our Lord, who was just entering the City, when knowing him he asked him Lord, whether art thou going? from whom he received this Answer, I am come to Rome to be crucified a second time.

By which answer St. Peter apprehending him∣self to be reproved for endeavouring to fly that Death which was allotted him, and that our Savi∣our meant he was to be Crucified in his Servant, he returned again to the Prison and delivered himself into the hands of the Keeper, and so continued till the day of his Execution, with great chearful∣ness: When having saluted his Brethren, and especially St. Paul, who was at that time his Fel∣low-Prisoner. He was led to the top of the Vatican Mountain, near the River Tiber, about three Furlongs without the City and there Cru∣cified with his Head downwards; it being his own desire so to dye, alledging that he was unworthy

to suffer after the same manner that his Lord and Master had suffered, and so having run the race that was set before him, he (undoubtedly) ob∣tained the reward layed up for him in the Highest Heavens. And thus having briefly run over the Life of this great Apostle, I shall proceed to St. Paul who fell by the Commandment of the same bloody Tyrant, and if not on the self-same day yet within a very short time after.